Elmo wants to hear a story, but all of the adults are too busy to spend time with him. Bob is teaching clarinet lessons, Alan is swamped with lunch orders, and Maria has too many toasters to repair. Maria encourages Elmo to make up his own story, so he imagines that he's the Royal Elmo, who's never too busy to help his friends on Sesame Street. But as the story continues, the Royal Elmo gets tired of all the requests, and he's too busy to play.

Finally, all of the adults are finished with their jobs, and they want to tell Elmo their stories. Elmo has to rush off and feed Dorothy, so he leaves Big Bird in his place.

Segments

Film: A class makes up a story about a fish named Billy, which is told through animation based on the kids' drawings. (EKA: Episode 3765)